TWO women have been to every single lido across the UK – so it’s fair to say they know the best outdoor pools to cool down in this summer.
Authors Emma Pusill and Janet Wilkinson met through their shared loved of lidos, and between them, have visited them all over the years.
The pair put together The Lido Guide which was first published in 2019 and is a practical guide to all the 130 outdoor pools in the country.
So whether you’re looking for family-friendly pools, ones with beach views or huge cafés, Emma reveals some of the loveliest lidos where you should swim this summer.
Family-friendly lidos
“Three spring to mind for family-friendly lidos. Firstly, I would say Haltwhistle.
“It’s in Northumberland and it has amazing twisty slides as well as a larger and smaller pool – so it’s lots of fun for kids.
“There’s a really good splash pad at Greenbank Pool in Somerset.
“I also like Droitwich Spa Lido in Worcester for families – it’s got a splash pad, and at one end it has a sloping entry, so it’s more of a beach-style pool.
“My daughter’s favourite, which she loved as a child, is The Strand Lido in Gillingham, Kent.
“It’s like the Mediterranean with a huge lazy river around the outside and a little elephant slide in the toddler pool.”
Tidal pools
“Tidal pools are all so pretty and there’s a lovely cluster of them in Scotland; Pittenweem, Cellardyke and St Monans which all look out to the Firth of Forth.
“You can have a lovely weekend visiting all of those.
“I am very fond of Bude Sea Pool too which is lovely, then there’s Shoalstone which really cute and it’s just reopened.
“It feels like a more conventional pool even though it’s washed over by the sea, it’s free to use too, so it makes for an inexpensive day out.”
Free lidos
“Most tidal pools are completely free to use – but a best example of a free lido that isn’t tidal is Mount Wise in Plymouth.
“Everyone usually thinks about Tinside Lido in Plymouth which is very beautiful.
“Mount Wise is only a mile from there with three swimming pools on-site, a toddler walk-through area and it’s absolutely brilliant.
“There’s another little pool in Cumbria called Hunsonby which isn’t free, but is managed on an honesty box where you can pop your money in.”
Hidden gems
“I would say the Cumbria cluster, as none of those are very well known.
“There’s Shap, Greystoke and Lazonby but at the top of the list I’d say is Askham.
“They’re all close together too, so you could go for a weekend and see them all, they’re tucked away in villages rather than towns.
“Clyst Hydon in Exeter I’d also include as a hidden gem. It’s completely hidden away up a little leafy track and if Enid Blyton wrote ‘Five Go Swimming‘ I’m sure it would have been set there.”
Lidos with extras
“Sea Lanes Canary Wharf is great for having lots of things on-site, they’ve got two big saunas, catering, and funky pods to sit in if the weather is a bit bleak.
“Hathersage has an underground café which is really nice – I say underground, it’s underneath the covered terrace opposite the bandstand.
“So you have to go up a little set of stairs to get to the pool.
“Saltdean Lido in Brighton is one of most beautiful streamline modern building that has a lovely restaurant on-site and a library – that’s a great extra.
“Then, I went to Guernsey recently and La Vallette tidal pools have put in a brilliant cafe, in a new, very modern, building.
“The pools are lovely too, there’s a cluster of four of them along a half a mile on the stretch of coast. The café sits on what used to be the ladies and children’s pool.”
Pretty views
“There’s a tidal pool at the Marine Lake at Clevedon which is essentially a massive 200metre long infinity pool.
“If you go up to the sea wall you’ll be looking out across the Bristol Channel and the Victorian Pier, it’s a lovely view.
“I quite like Lido Ponty – which is the only one in Wales.
“It’s surrounded by hills which you can see in all direction, it feels very green.
“Similar to that is Hathersage in the Peak District which has a bandstand in the grounds and you’re surrounded by hills there as well – it’s pretty special.
“I suppose as well, Sea Lanes has just opened in Canary Wharf, it’s not a classically pretty view. But you won’t get a view like that anywhere else – it’s a fun swim.”
London lidos
“London lidos are all so different – I have a soft spot for Parliament Hill, it’s open all year-round and the staff there are brilliant. Although it’s very busy in the summer months there.
“I quite like Oasis in Covent Garden. The pool itself is nothing to write home about but it’s in Covent Garden – you can walk past it at street level and never know it was there.
“It’s a 25metre heated pool and sauna, so you go up a little flight of stairs. It’s surrounded by trees so it’s leafy which is such a treat in that part of London.”
Adults-only
“In Matlock Bath there’s a pool out the back of the New Bath Hotel & Spa lido that’s unashamedly adults only.
“It’s a hotel pool as well as being open to the public and I think they don’t want it being overly noisy with children.
“Sea Lanes in Brighton is also adults-only because it’s a training pool.
“But if you have a child that is a club swimmer and swims laps I don’t think they’d turn you away. It doesn’t do fun and floats sessions though.”
If you want to know more about every lido in the UK, check out Emma and Janet’s book The Lido Guide.
And keep up with Emma, Janet and their lido visits on social media too.